The alembic and the coffeepot. The brandy house in 18th century Italy

Bibliographic Data

ID7472806
AuthorsMario Grassi (0000-0003-1059-5610, University of Padua, corresponding author)
Year2026
Volume29
Issue1
Pages80-95
Publication date2026-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueFood Culture & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1552-8014 • E-ISSN: 1751-7443
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/15528014.2023.2296731
OpenAlexW4390496402
LanguageEN
References cited15

This article contributes to the discourse on "public houses" in the early modern period by introducing into the debate a type of establishment widely spread in Italy: the so-called bottega da acquavitaio (brandy house). Initially serving as pharmaceutical workshops associated with acquavite (brandy) distillation, these stores eventually acquired characteristics of public houses. With the introduction of colonial beverages in Europe, these shops undergo a transformation in merchandise, taking on distinctive features such as the extensive sale of coffee. Drawing upon a micro-historical approach, we present a case study centered on Turin to investigate this phenomenon. Our analysis illustrates that, in the 18th-century Italian context, distinctions between the brandy house and the coffeehouse are not straightforward. On the contrary, these shops were places where traditions and novelties intertwined, actively participating in the definition of modern European public drinking patterns

Aesthetics · Archaeology · Art · Colonialism · Context (archaeology · Economics · Economy · Epistemology · Period (music · Phenomenon · Political science · Culinary Culture and Tourism · Financial Crisis of the 21st Century · History · Philosophy · Wine Industry and Tourism

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